Jer. 21:11–22:10
21:11 The Lord told me to say to the royal court of Judah:
“Listen to the Lord’s message,
12O royal family descended from David.
The Lord says:
‘See to it that people each day are judged fairly.
Deliver those who have been robbed from those who oppress them.
Otherwise, my wrath will blaze out against you.
It will burn like a fire that cannot be put out
because of the evil that you have done.
13Listen, you who sit enthroned above the valley on a rocky plateau.
I am opposed to you,’ says the Lord.
‘You boast, “No one can swoop down on us.
No one can penetrate into our places of refuge.”
14But I will punish you as your deeds deserve,’
says the Lord.
‘I will set fire to your palace;
it will burn up everything around it.’”
22:1 The Lord told me, “Go down to the palace of the king of Judah. Give him a message from me there. 2Say: ‘Listen, O king of Judah who follows in David’s succession. You, your officials, and your subjects who pass through the gates of this palace must listen to the Lord’s message. 3The Lord says, “Do what is just and right. Deliver those who have been robbed from those who oppress them. Do not exploit or mistreat resident foreigners who live in your land, children who have no fathers, or widows. Do not kill innocent people in this land. 4If you are careful to obey these commands, then the kings who follow in David’s succession and ride in chariots or on horses will continue to come through the gates of this palace, as will their officials and their subjects. 5But, if you do not obey these commands, I solemnly swear that this palace will become a pile of rubble. I, the Lord, affirm it!”’
6“For the Lord says concerning the palace of the king of Judah,
“‘This place looks like a veritable forest of Gilead to me.
It is like the wooded heights of Lebanon in my eyes.
But I swear that I will make it like a wilderness
whose towns have all been deserted.
7I will send men against it to destroy it
with their axes and hatchets.
They will hack up its fine cedar panels and columns
and throw them into the fire.
8“‘People from other nations will pass by this city. They will ask one another, “Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?” 9The answer will come back, “It is because they broke their covenant with the Lord their God and worshiped and served other gods.”
10“‘Do not weep for the king who was killed.
Do not grieve for him.
But weep mournfully for the king who has gone into exile.
For he will never return to see his native land again.
(NET Bible)Ps. 142
142:1 A well-written song by David, when he was in the cave; a prayer.
To the Lord I cry out;
to the Lord I plead for mercy.
2I pour out my lament before him;
I tell him about my troubles.
3Even when my strength leaves me,
you watch my footsteps.
In the path where I walk
they have hidden a trap for me.
4Look to the right and see.
No one cares about me.
I have nowhere to run;
no one is concerned about my life.
5I cry out to you, O Lord;
I say, “You are my shelter,
my security in the land of the living.”
6Listen to my cry for help,
for I am in serious trouble.
Rescue me from those who chase me,
for they are stronger than I am.
7Free me from prison
that I may give thanks to your name.
Because of me the godly will assemble,
for you will vindicate me.
(NET Bible)Acts 13:1–12
13:1 Now there were these prophets and teachers in the church at Antioch: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius the Cyrenian, Manaen (a close friend of Herod the tetrarch from childhood) and Saul. 2While they were serving the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3Then, after they had fasted and prayed and placed their hands on them, they sent them off.
4So Barnabas and Saul, sent out by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5When they arrived in Salamis, they began to proclaim the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. (Now they also had John as their assistant.) 6When they had crossed over the whole island as far as Paphos, they found a magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 7who was with the proconsul Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. The proconsul summoned Barnabas and Saul and wanted to hear the word of God. 8But the magician Elymas (for that is the way his name is translated) opposed them, trying to turn the proconsul away from the faith. 9But Saul (also known as Paul), filled with the Holy Spirit, stared straight at him 10and said, “You who are full of all deceit and all wrongdoing, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness—will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? 11Now look, the hand of the Lord is against you, and you will be blind, unable to see the sun for a time!” Immediately mistiness and darkness came over him, and he went around seeking people to lead him by the hand. 12Then when the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed because he was greatly astounded at the teaching about the Lord.
(NET Bible)It is not a matter of the origin of the Old Testament Scripture and its parts but of the value and the significance which it still has for the Christian. That the Old Testament, too, in its totality, in the opinion of Luther, was the Word of God needs no further proof. Yet, let this at least be quoted from his Introduction to the Old Testament: “I beg and faithfully warn every pious Christian not to stumble at the simplicity of the language and the stories that will often meet him there. He should not doubt that, however simple they may seem, there are the very words, works, judgments, and deeds of the high Majesty, power, and wisdom of God; for this is Scripture, and it makes the wisdom of God that He, lays before you in such simple and foolish (Matt. 11:25). Therefore let your own thoughts and feelings go and think of the Scriptures as the loftiest and noblest of holy things, as the richest of mines, which can never be worked out, so that you may find the wisdom of God that He lays before you in such simple and foolish guise, in order that He may quench all pride. Here you will find the swaddling clothes and the manger in which Christ lies, and to which the angel points the shepherds. Simple and little are the swaddling clothes, but dear is the treasure, Christ, that lies in them.” (28–29)
–Johann Michael Reu, Luther on the Scriptures
This daily Bible reading guide, Reading the Word of God, was conceived and prepared as a result of the ongoing discussions between representatives of three church bodies: Lutheran Church—Canada (LCC), The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) and the North American Lutheran Church (NALC). The following individuals have represented their church bodies and approved this introduction and the reading guide: LCC: President Robert Bugbee; NALC: Bishop John Bradosky, Revs. Mark Chavez, James Nestingen, and David Wendel; LCMS: Revs. Albert Collver, Joel Lehenbauer, John Pless, and Larry Vogel.